The Fallout
by jojo0039
Summary: Amelia Constantino was suppose to be meeting her estranged husband with divorce papers when the nuclear bombs hit. Instead she got stuck helping the town and family she ran away from heartbroken. As the days go on she forgives Jake and they rekindle their romance. Amelia's past comes declaring war on the town she calls home. Can Amelia and Jake save their town and family?
1. Pilot

*Hello everyone! I am new to this site and this is my first story on here! I finished Jericho on Netflix and fell completely in love with Skeet Ulrich. I hate that they cancelled the show and I want more. Here is my take on the show with my own added OC to the story line.*

* Disclaimer: I do not own Jericho or the characters and plot of the show. I only own Amelia and her own plot.*

Amelia drove past the 'Welcome to Jericho' sign. She looked at her watch as she seen that she was running behind. She glanced over at the papers that were sitting on the passenger seat beside her. Jake had finally gotten a hold of her after 5 years and he was willing to meet with her. She passed the Richmond Farm as so many memories flashed through her mind. She slowly drove through town. She spotted a familiar blonde putting stuff away in her car. Smiling, she parked the car beside her and got out. "Emily?" she asked as the blonde turned around quickly. "Oh my god! Amelia?" Emily quickly rushed to pull her oldest friend into a big hug. "Oh my god what are you doing here? Its been like what 5 years since you've stepped foot in Jericho." Emily questioned quickly. Amelia smiled softly. "I'm here meeting someone actually. I just saw you and decided to say 'hey'." Amelia responded softly. She missed her friend so much. "Oh OK! Well before you go back to New Bern we should get a drink at Bailey's. There is so much that I need to tell you." Emily said excitedly as she held up her hand to show Amelia the ring on her finger. Amelia's eyes went wide and jaw dropped as she grabbed Emily's hand to get a better look at her ring. "Oh wow congratulations! I am so happy for you Em." Amelia gave her a sad smile as she pulled her into another hug. "I miss you so much. I'll call you in a bit. We should catch up." Amelia agreed missing her friend. "I have to go, but call me OK." Emily and Amelia exchanged numbers and she watched as her friend drove away. She turned around and stopped suddenly at the person standing right in front of her with flowers. She let out a breath of air in surprise and didn't know how to speak. "Jake."

Amelia stood as Jake walked closer to her slowly. "Hey Mel." Amelia stood still as he pulled her into a hug. She stepped away from him as he held out the flowers for her. "They're your favorite." she took them from him and placed them in her car. "Where have you been the last 5 years Jake?" Amelia asked trying to hide all emotion from her face and voice. "The Navy." he told her, but she could tell that he wasn't telling her the truth and gave him a look. He scoffed. "Yea why should I even bother. You can always tell when I'm lying." he said to her with a grin. She sighed in frustration. "Its not funny Jake. Your parents have spent the last 5 years worried about you. Not to mention me your wife who you decided to just leave one day for no reason!" she was losing her cool and she heard her voice cracking as she talked to him. "I know. The last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt you. You mean so much to me. I love you so much and instead of working out my shit with you beside me I made the greatest mistake and left without you." Amelia walked backwards slowly until she awkwardly bumped into her car. She let out a nervous laugh. "W-well obviously I was not ready for this like I thought I was." she breathed out quickly and nervously. She ran her hand through her hair nervously before she looked back up at Jake who was grinning at her knowingly. "I have to go." she told him shortly as she reached for the handle of her car clumsily. "Amelia-." Jake grinned at her behavior knowing he always had this affect on her no matter what. She held her hand to cut him off. "Not another word Jake." she said to him before she got in the car and took off. She looked in the seat and for the first time noticed the divorce papers sitting beside her. "Shit!" she exclaimed as she forgot all about the real reason why she was even in this town.

"She pulled the car to a stop in front of Stanley's farm house. As she got out she couldn't stop the big grin that invaded her face at seeing one of her oldest friends rush over with a matching grin himself. "God damn Amelia Constantino first Jake now you. I can't say I'm not surprised." Stanley joked as he pulled her into a big warm hug. Amelia pulled away confused. "Jake was here? When?" she asked him curiously. "About a couple hours ago. He said he could only stay for a couple hours. But he told me he had to meet up with you too. He told me about the divorce papers." Stanley said by the tone of his voice he did not approve of the papers. Amelia sighed in frustration. "Don't give me that look Stanley. Its been coming for a while he's the one that decided to just up and leave one day without telling anyone where he's going. I loved him. I loved him and he just left me." she had to get control of her emotions as she heard her voice breaking. "I know all that. But the way that you two are with each other- I've never seen anything like it. You two belong together." Amelia chuckled softly. "I saw him." she informed him. "He caught me by surprise with a dozen of blue orchids. And you wanna know what I did? I stumbled into my car because he told me he still loved me and I practically ran away from him." She finally lost it and shouted at him hysterically. Stanley stared at her until he started busting out laughing. She glared at him. "What is so funny Stanley Richmond?" she asked crossing her arms defensively. "You ran from Jake? You actually ran from Jake? That's just too funny." Amelia slapped him on the arm playfully. "That's it you laugh at me you're cooking me dinner tonight." she laughed as they rushed up the steps of the house. "Nah I don't do the cooking you'll have to talk to Bonnie about that one." he joked as they walked into the house laughing.

As Amelia was helping Stanley cook dinner she looked at her phone and noticed she had a missed call. She grabbed it and stepped outside. She quickly called the number back. "Hey dad, just returning your call. I'm still in Jericho I'm eating dinner then I'll be heading back soon. And just so we're clear I don't care if I behaved recklessly there was no excuse for-" she got cut off by static and then beeping. She pulled the phone from her ear as Bonnie stepped outside and stood beside her. When she noticed Bonnie wasn't trying to get her attention she looked up and gasped. A huge explosion in the distance in the shape of a mushroom. Her eyes went wide and her mind went blank. Stanley rushed over to the girls and put his arms around both of them. "We have to go into town come on." he ushered them both to his truck.

Jake was driving down the highway thinking about Amelia. He knew that he couldn't be with her and just tell her what has been going on with him. He needed to keep her safe. But he had to see for himself that she was alright. He had every intention of signing those divorce papers, but when he seen her standing there he never felt so in love then he did in that moment. He missed her completely. He sighed in frustration and slammed his hands on the steering wheel. He stopped the car suddenly and took a deep breath. What was he doing? He couldn't leave her again. He had to go back and talk to her and try to make things right. He quickly turned his car around and started going back the way he came. Just as he was about to get off the highway he looked up and seen a huge mushroom shaped explosion that could only be one thing. He was too busy looking out the window at the explosion that he didn't see the car in front of him until it was too late. He tried to hit the breaks but the car smashed into him forcing him off the road and everything went black.

Amelia got out of the truck as he parked it on main street. She noticed everyone was freaking out and running around. She ran down the street to the police station where she knew she would find out what was going on. She ran inside and stopped when she spotted Jake's dad trying to keep everyone calm. "Mr. Green!" Amelia shouted out his name to get his attention. He turned around to see who yelled for him and he looked surprised to see her. "Amelia? What are you doing here?" he asked her curiously as he pulled her into a small hug. "I uh had some business here. I was wondering if I could offer any assistance? My father taught me a lot about emergency situations like this and I want to help." he looked at her until he slowly nodded. "Any help will he appreciated at this point. We just found out that a bus full of children haven't made it back yet. They took a field trip to the caves." he said as he pulled a map out and the sheriff and a couple firefighters and Eric along with Amelia all gathered around it. "Now who can tell me where they might have gone to for repairs?" Mayor Green asked asking for different locations along that route. "Well we have Wilson's Garage off 160." Amelia looked at the map and tried to think of all the roads and access to the town. "There is also Cedar Run Road. Principal Movey said they took a detour before the phone cut out." Eric stated. "Cedar Run? That's the road that leads back to Denver. Jake left to go back to Denver. If he's out there then there is a chance he might help those kids." Amelia imputed. Eric looked up at Amelia with a look. "Or he might not even stop to help them." he told her just trying to start with her. She shook her head and opened her mouth to give Eric a piece of her mind when Mayor Green laid his hand on her shoulder. "If Jake is out there as well then we will bring him home along with those children, but we have to work together to find these children." he lectured looking from his son to his friend's daughter. "I figure we can send two teams out. There is only so many places that they can be." the sheriff imputed forcing the two to stop bickering. "What about the parents?" The small group turned to see Grey Anderson standing there glaring daggers at Mayor Green. Amelia rolled her eyes and turned away from the chaos that Grey started most likely on purpose. "I see things never quite changed around here." she whispered catching the attention of the Two Green men. They both gave a small smile before the chatter got worse causing Mayor Green to turn around to address them. "Folks! Folk!" they all shut up to listen to their Mayor. "Now, look, I know that every part of you wants to just rush out there. I don't blame you. But as your friend I'm asking you to think about that. You're all safe here. Now what if you go out there and get stranded and your child comes back an orphan?" Amelia's mind was racing but questions and doubts about her friends and family back in New Bern. But she knew for her piece of mind that she had to stay because this was her home for many years after high school and she had just as much ties here as she did in New Bern. Her attention went back to the Mayor. "You know the sheriff and his men. You know that he'll find your kids, so please." he turned back around to focus on the map.

Amelia walked around outside trying to reach her dad. All she got was a busy signal. She huffed in frustration and shoved the phone back in her pocket. She jumped when a hand landed on her shoulder. She turned to see Johnston and Eric. "Hey I haven't been able to reach anyone yet. What's going on?" she asked as she noticed their serious expressions. "We're sending Bill and Jimmy to go look for Jake now. If he's out there they'll find him." Johnston told her in a reassuring voice. "Uh Amelia, do you still have that nurse training that my mother gave you?" Eric asked her hesitantly. She nodded her head in response. "I do. Why do you want me to head over to the hospital?" she asked them quickly. Johnston nodded his head. "If you don't mind doing so. But first if you don't mind Gail has taken some town folks and she said that some are injured and could really use your help." She nodded her head quickly. "Of course I'll head over there right now." They each gave her a small smile as she turned to head to the house that she spent so much time in over the years. Once she got to the street she walked up to the porch and knocked on the door. The door opened and Gail Green stood there with wide eyes and a surprised look on her face. "Oh Amelia sweetheart its so good to see you." Gail pulled Amelia into a big hug. "Hi Mrs. Green its so good to see after so long." Gail pulled back to get a good look at the woman who was her oldest son's long time friend and ex girlfriend. "You look good sweetie. What are you doing here? I didn't know you were in town." Gail sounded surprised to see her, but she shouldn't be surprised knowing that since Jake was here he would've reached out to her. "I uh I was meeting Jake. I had something to discuss with him." Amelia said quickly not telling the woman that she was technically married to her son. "Mr. Green sent me here to help out with the injured." Amelia said changing the subject. "Yes of course right this way." she lead her into the living room and Amelia was relieved to see Stanley and Bonnie there along with others who were scared. Amelia rushed over and pulled Stanley and Bonnie into a hug. Gail walked back over with a first aid kit. "I know I taught you how to use this." Gail gave her a look as she opened it up. "Thanks. I've got this group if you want to get them over there." Amelia instructed.

Once they got everyone patched up someone knocked on the door. Gail stood up to go see who it was. She opened the door and she ushered Dale Turner inside. Everyone looked at him as he help a tape in his hands. "What do you have there son?" Gail asked as she noticed that he was just standing there emotionless. "My mom was killed in an explosion." he showed them the tape. Gail grabbed it and put it in the tape player as they listened to the message. Once they listened to it Amelia quickly stopped it as it was painful to listen to. "I'm so sorry Dale I didn't know your mom was in Denver." Gail said as she wrapped her arm around him for comfort. "She wasn't. She was in Atlanta." At that news the people started freaking out. Amelia and Gail tried to get them to calm down but was unsuccessful. "Amelia we have to go tell Johnston about this." Amelia nodded in agreement and Gail grabbed her coat and a flashlight.

Once they rushed to the sheriff's station Eric brushed past them. "Eric are you OK?" Gail asked as she pulled him into a hug. "Yea mom I'm fine. We have to get to the gas station people are freaked out and causing a mess out there." he informed the two women before he rushed past them. Gail rushed toward her husband urgently to tell him the news. "Do you need any help Eric?" Amelia asked shouting out to him. "Stay with my mom and dad." he told her brushing off her question to help. Amelia turned her attention back to the married couple as Gail tried to get Johnston's attention. "Johnston listen to me. Dale Turner's mother died tonight in another explosion." Johnston froze as his eyes went wide. "It was in Atlanta." Amelia informed him for Gail who couldn't get the words out. "We need to get to the gas station right now. There are people trying to kill each other right now. This town needs us." Amelia followed behind them out of the police station and towards the riot.

They rushed toward the group of people who were listening to Grey Anderson trying to get them to calm down but he was trying to make Mayor Green look bad. "All I am saying is I think we should get organized and stop fighting each other." Amelia rolled her eyes at Grey Anderson who has always gotten on her nerves for many reasons. "I don't know where the mayor is, but maybe its time we came up with a plan ourselves." Amelia walked through the crowd with Eric and Gail as Johnston made his way over to where Grey was making his speech. "What's going on Grey? We making speeches?" Mayor Green asked as he came to stand beside the man who was suppose to be opposing him in the future election. "With all due respect Mr. Mayor, we have a missing bus, no police, there is firemen doing policemen's jobs and someone who doesn't even live here anymore helping out with town business." he said as he pointed at Amelia. Amelia glared as Eric stood in front of her ."How dare you politicize it!" Eric shouted angrily. "Eric-" Amelia tried to stop him. "And second of all everyone here knows Amelia and she has been a part of this town since she was 18 years old. She knows about this town just as much as the rest of us do." Grey stood his ground. "I am not talking to my opponent, I am talking to my mayor!" Grey shouted catching everyone's attention. "Now I don't care about the election. I care about our survival. We may be on our own here and I need to know what my mayor intends to do!" the chatter started back up again as Mayor Green turned toward the people. Amelia felt a hand in hers and looked to see Stanley and Bonnie beside her. She smiled at them and let him pull her closer so he could engulf her in a protective hug. "I know we've been through a lot tonight. I've been to big cities and I've been to foreign countries. But I will take good care of the good people of Jericho." People started to cut him off as they continued to ask questions. Just as the questions were starting to get out of control they all heard a loud honking noise. Everyone turned to see the missing school bus come to a stop before them. The door opened and someone shouted that they needed help. Amelia's heart skipped a beat as she recognized that voice. She pushed through the people to get to the bus. As they were taking the children out she looked up at the driver seat and locked eyes with her husband. She let out a sigh of relief at knowing he was alive. Gail and Johnston stood on either side of her as Gail went into protective mother mode. "Oh god Jake your face." she reached up to help him. Amelia stood off to the side as Eric helped him down. Once Jake had his arm around Eric he turned to look at Amelia who was just standing there trying not to cry. "Amelia-" he started to say but she cut him off. "You need medical attention. You look like shit." she followed as Eric led his brother toward the ambulance. Once he got him on the gurney the medics started to look him over. Amelia leaned against the ambulance as Gail jumped into the back. "Eric get April and meet us at the Medical Center." Gail instructed her youngest son. Jake didn't take his eyes off Amelia as she tried not to look at him. "Hold on, there's an empty prison bus out there." Jake informed Eric catching Amelia's attention. "Where at?" Eric asked concerned. "Cedar Run." Jake said as he winced in pain as he settled back on the gurney. "Alright just relax. I'll take care of it." he said before he rushed off. Amelia went to rush off too, but Jake was quick and grabbed her wrist. "Amelia wait-" she cut him off again. "I need to go check on those kids." she whispered not trusting her voice to betray her. "Ride with us." he suggested in an attempt to be close to her. He didn't want her out of his sight. She pulled her wrist from his grasp. "I'll meet you at the medical center." she paused as she felt herself cracking. "I'm really glad you're OK Jake." her voice broke as she felt a wave of emotions coming on. Gail witnessed the whole exchange and knew that they had unresolved issues and she noticed that both were hiding their feelings from one another. She was going to get to the bottom of it and help them. Amelia walked around the trucks until she was by herself. She felt herself completely breaking as she started shaking as she silently cried. She put her hand over her mouth to smother the cries. Her knees gave out and she slid down the truck onto the ground as she silently cried.


	2. The Fallout

Amelia followed April into the examination room. She was helping her out with small stuff so she could take care of the people that required more medical attention. Amelia looked in the room to see a familiar woman sitting on the bed with her leg propped up in bandages. "Heather? What are you doing here? I didn't know you were in Jericho!" she said as she embraced her old friend from college. "I moved here to teach at the elementary school. I really love it. I heard that you had went back to New Bern. Its good to have you here." Heather said to her. April grabbed the boot cast and turned to Amelia. "You wanna help me put this on her?" Amelia grabbed the boot from her so she could give Heather a shot. "You'll still be pretty mobile in it. How do you feel?" April asked Heather as Amelia strapped the boot together on Heather's foot. She smiled at her friend in triumph. "I feel like a badass." Heather joked as Amelia chucked softly. April even cracked a smile. "You should. You helped keep those kids calm and safe. I'm glad you're OK." Amelia told her friend. She caught herself telling that to a lot of people as her mind instantly went to Jake. As if he knew she was thinking about him the door barged open and the man invading her thoughts poked his head in the room. "April, does the clinic have a fallout shelter?" Jake asked quickly as his eyes landed on Amelia. She felt herself squirm under his gaze as she finally realized what he was asking and became confused. "Yes. Why what's going on?" April asked. "Its bad. I need you guys to come with me." Jake said as he kept his eyes on Amelia. She gave him a confused look but stood up anyway. "I'll be right back." She assured Heather who looked just as confused as she did. Amelia followed behind April as she brushed past Jake. She felt his hand on her lower back and tensed up. They followed April down to the fallout shelter under the clinic.

Once they opened up the door Amelia's eyes went wide at how horrible the room looked. They started moving stuff around and Amelia tried to stay as far away from Jake as she could but she left his presence all around her. "When was the last time someone was in here?" Jake asked. "You've got to be kidding me! I can't put people in here." April stated. Amelia felt something crawling down by her feet. She looked down and let out a small shriek. Jake and April both looked her way as she felt her face growing hot from embarrassment. "It caught me off guard." she stated lamely. Jake smirked and looked back in the room. "There's no air in here at all. We need to see if the fans work." Jake stated to them as he tried to think of something to do. "We have a lot of work a head of us if we plan to pull this off." Amelia stated as turned to walk back out. "I need to find a way to get a hold of my father. I need to find a way to warn him." she turned to rush back upstairs. Jake followed quickly after her. "Amelia!" he shouted her name but she ignored him. Once she made it to the main floor she started to rush toward the exit when Jake caught up with her and pulled her back. "Amelia you can't go out there right now. I know you want to find a way to warn your father, but he's a smart man and he would figure out what to do." Jake tried to convince her. "Its easy for you to say! Your family is already here Jake! Mine is miles away from me. I need to find a way to get back to them!" She tried to pull out of his grasp but he was stronger then her. "Amelia! Amelia listen to me." he grabbed her face in his hands to make her look at him. "I know that you're worried about your dad. And as soon as this is over I will take you myself back to New Bern so you can be with him. But for right now I need you to keep a level head and help me OK." he talked calmly but firmly to her so he would get his point across to her. He knew that she was thinking about her father and wanted to be with him instead of in this town with him. "I should be with him right now. You're the reason I am here in this town. I could be taking care of my father and my friends." she pulled out of his grasp and she tried to ignore the hurt look that passed on his face. She sighed and wiped the tears that escaped and rolled down her face. "After we get all these people to safety I'm going back to New Bern with or without you." she told him in an emotionless tone. He nodded his head not trusting his voice to speak. After a minute of silence between them she finally relented. "What do you need me to do?" she asked him knowing that he would need her help. "We need to gather people to help move all of this equipment. I'm going to try to work on the ventilation system to try to get it to work." She narrowed her eyes in thought. She knew the right person who would be able to help them. She turned and walked away from Jake leaving him standing there in the hall wishing things were different between them.

Amelia grabbed Heather and the two women made their way down to the shelter. Amelia spotted Jake working with a bunch of wires. "Mind if I help with that?" Heather spoke up knowing he was doing it all wrong. Jake looked up at both woman with a confused look. "You know how to strip wires?" he asked sarcastically. "Ever since junior high." he looked back at Heather then Amelia who both had smirks on their faces. "Seriously?" he asked. Heather wrapped an arm around Amelia's shoulder. "Yea I was that popular. The only friend I ever had was Amelia. I even taught her a thing or two." Jake looked back at the wires he was working on. "Great. Check the fan belt. I think its frayed." Jake instructed as he went back to work on the wires. Amelia helped Heather walk over to the vent that he was working on. "Well then you might want to get another one. Any mid-century American car would be a good match. And check the brushers. We don't want the motor to seize up-" Amelia saw the look on Jake's face as he realized she actually knew what she was talking about. "OK. You take over here. I will look for a fan belt." he stood up and stopped in front of Amelia. "Do you mind helping me look for one?" he asked her hoping she would come with him. She had every intention of telling him no but she ended up saying the complete opposite. "OK." she mentally kicked herself in the leg for saying yes. Her whole plan was to stay as far away from Jake Green as she could. But that plan was falling apart around her. She gave Heather one last look and followed behind Jake who was on the search for April.

Amelia and Jake finally found April in the nursery where she was having trouble with a mother and her baby. "April we need your help." Amelia stated as they stopped beside her. "She thinks that we shouldn't move the baby." she tells them with a voice of concern and exhaustion. Jake stepped forward to address the mother. "Ma'am, your baby is protected in this little bubble. She's got fresh air and food. Right now she's the safest person in Jericho, but you're not. We need to make sure she has a mother to take care of her when this thing is over, okay." Amelia watched as he talked to the woman. She felt her heart skip beats as he talked in a calm and loving voice. This was definitely not the same Jake Green that left her and his family five years ago. "Please let us take you both down to the shelter Ok." The lady finally agreed and Jake walked back out into the hallway to grab someone who was helping round up patients. Amelia felt Jake graze her hand with his as he passed her and gave it a tiny squeeze. She let out a breath and finally noticed that April was giving her a knowing look. "I know you two have been apart for a while, but I can still see how much you both still care about each other. If this world is falling apart then don't be stubborn. Make the most out of it." April tried to give her friend some advice. Amelia gave her a small smile in return and turned to follow Jake who was flagging down a worker. Amelia walked over to him slowly. He finally turned and noticed she was right behind him. "Jake I-" She got interrupted by a woman who stopped in front of them in a rush. "Jake? Amelia? I'm Emily's aunt." Amelia quickly pulled the woman into a hug as Jake just stood there. "Of course Mrs. Dawson." Amelia was dumbfounded for a second as she hugged the older woman. "Have either of you seen Emily?" Amelia shook her head. "No I haven't seen her since yesterday morning. Maybe she went to the other shelter." Jake suggested to the woman. "No one there has seen her and she's not at her house either. I heard that both of you were in town and I figured if the two people who would know where she was would be you two." Amelia gave her a sad look. She was about to tell the woman she would go search for her when Jake spoke up. "I'm sorry neither of us have seen her. If I see her I will tell her to go to the shelter." He pulled Amelia away down the hall until they were alone. "Do you think you can help April gather up the people while I go and see about that belt?" he asked her. "Yea of course." she replied. She moved around him to get back to April. "Amelia." she turned back around as he called out to her. He hesitated with his words. "I-" she stood and waited for him to say what he wanted to say. "I want you to be careful." he finally told her. She found a pang of brief disappointment thinking he was going to say something else. She smiled briefly the smile not reaching real far and turned to go find April.

She was able to find April and they worked together along with the staff members and escorted the patients downstairs toward the shelter. They made it downstairs and noticed that the room still looked the same but smelled like smoke. "Jake? People are ready to be brought in." April informed as Amelia stood beside her. "Don't let them in here!" he shouted as he rushed over to them. "The storm is going to be here soon Jake! People are getting scared. Do we have air or not?" April losing her patience. "You seal these people up in here they'll die." Amelia finally walked down the steps toward them and put her hands on her hips in frustration. "Then what do you want us to do Jake?" she asked equally scared and frustrated as everyone there.

They all rushed out of the hospital as they loaded up a bunch of medical supplies on the school bus and the ambulance. Amelia finally got everything loaded and went to climb in the ambulance when Jake grabbed her arm. "Come on there is room on the bus." he pulled her away and over to where April was arguing with Eric on the radio. She finally shoved the radio back to Jake. "Sorry, my husband needs a good kick in the rear sometimes." Amelia and Jake shared an amused look as they boarded the bus. "You don't have to apologize to me." Jake retorted mostly to himself as they sat down. April went toward the back to check on her patients. Amelia sat beside Heather who was sitting a couple rows back from the driver's seat. Jake sat in the driver's seat as he started the bus. Once they got on the road, Amelia started thinking about a lot of things. Jake was at the top of her mind. She was still so mad at him for what he had done, but seeing him today putting forth so much help and authority made her realize that he did not come back to Jericho the same Jake who left her all those years ago. She looked up and seen him watching her in the mirror. She glanced back down quickly as she felt her cheeks burn from a blush. She looked up again and just in time to see him catch her looking in his direction from the mirror. She knew he was smirking at her and she rolled her eyes and turned her head to look out the window.

They finally pulled up to the City Hall building just as Eric came rushing out. "Whoa people do not get off the bus!" he shouted to them. "We can not take anymore people." Amelia narrowed her eyes and stood up and walked off the bus behind Jake. "What the hell are you doing Eric?" Jake asked his brother confused. "They all can't come in here Jake." Amelia crossed her arms as she stood by Jake. "What do you mean they can't come in here Eric? Do you realize the shit we just had to go through to load all of these people up and bring them here?" Amelia shouted at Eric. He looked at Amelia standing beside Jake. "We're all packed in there Amelia. There is no room for more people!" he shouted back at her. Jake stood in front of her suddenly. "Don't yell at her like that Eric! We got a whole bus full of people who need shelter." April walked up pushing the baby in the incubator. "You're really gonna turn away all these people? You're really gonna turn away your wife?" April asked her husband not believing that he was actually being like this. Eric stormed over to her to stop her from bringing the incubator any closer. "If we let anymore people in then we'll suffocate." Amelia turned toward the voice and rolled her eyes when she discovered it was Gray Anderson. April was getting ready to lose her patience with her husband. "Eric, there are really sick people here and the storm is coming!" she shouted at him trying to get him to see reason. "OK fine we can only take 10 and I saved a spot for you." April looked at him with disgust not actually believing how he is acting. "OK the ten most critical fast!" Amelia rushed as she started to help people out of the bus. She heard Jake shout to Gray about the salt mine. She ignored what they were saying and helped get people down off the bus. She felt a pull on her hand and looked to see Jake pulling her away from the person she was helping. "What's going on?" she asked him curiously. "We're going to the salt mine. There's a ventilation system and running water. Gray said we can fit as many people as possible. All I can think about is keeping you safe right now." Jake whispered to her as he grabbed her face and placed his forehead on top of hers. She let out a shaky breath from how close they were. "We're all going to be OK Jake. You have helped so much. These people are going to live because of you." she whispered to him knowing that he needed reassurance on that he was doing the right thing. Amelia opened her eyes and looked up and locked eyes with Jake and felt everything she felt for him returning. Their moment got ruined by a gust of wind and thunder rolling in the distance. They looked to see a big storm cloud heading their way from a distance.

They finally made it to the salt mine and Amelia jumped up instantly to help people. "I can only fit 12 people down the shaft at a time." Gray shouted out to Jake who was helping people out of the bus. "Shep, we're going to have to seal the entrance." Jake informed them making Amelia's eyes go wide. "There's no door Jake!" Shep responded back. "We can't just let the rain pour down the shaft. These people won't be safe." his eyes landed on Amelia who was helping people into the shaft. "We all won't be safe." he finished his mind instantly going to keeping his wife safe. "How do we seal it?" Shep asked as they quickly made their way up the stairs. "I don't know it's a mine you have dynamite right?" Jake asked catching the attention of both Gray and Amelia. "Whoa now hang on." Gray butted in but Jake ignored him. "If we put charges all along this entrance way then that should seal it up." Amelia looked scared as Gray looked like he was about to argue with Jake. "How do we know that just won't bring the whole thing on top of us?" Gray asked sounding skeptical about the whole thing. "We don't." Amelia's mind went blank after hearing what he said. He noticed her look and came over to her. He grabbed her shoulders to get her attention. "Hey are you OK?" he asked her already knowing the answer. She nodded not trusting herself to speak. "OK we almost got all of the people in. I'm gonna need your help to make sure all the people are back far enough so that no one gets hurt." Jake told her softly knowing she was not handling this well. "I have to get the dynamite, but I will be right here with you OK." he assured her. She nodded and Jake had to pull away when Shep called for him.

Amelia was able to get everyone down the shaft and was standing at the entrance as the last person passed her. "Jake how the hell did you learn how to do all of this?" she asked him knowing he didn't know about dynamite back when they were together. "I knew a guy." he told her cryptically. "Did you blow him up?" she exclaimed. He gave her a look before he smirked. Just then a small voice came over the radio. 'span style="font-style: italic;"Hello can anyone help us? This is Emily Sullivan. I am at the Richmond Ranch with Bonnie. There are two men here with guns. I think they might have killed the sheriff. Hello? /span' Jake reached for the radio quickly. "Emily? Emily can you hear me?" Amelia felt her heart drop as she stormed over to the entrance. Jake grabbed her arm to stop her. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" she pulled her arm out of his grip. "That is one of my best friends out there. She needs help and I am not gonna sit here while she's out there possibly in danger." She tried to turn to walk out but Jake blocked her way. "No I am not letting you out there. It is going to start to rain any minute! If anything happened to you I-" he stopped himself and took a deep breath. "Jake I am going to help my friend. You can either come with me or stay the hell outta my way." she stated firmly as they stared each other down, neither of them wanting to back down. As Jake still stared at her he raised his hand toward Shep. "I need your keys Shep." Shep looked hesitant as Amelia tried to stop the smug look that she wanted to plant on her face. "Its gonna rain any minute Jake." Shep said sounding hesitant. "Give me your keys. We can make it." Shep finally tossed Jake his keys. "You two are out of your minds." Gray muttered to them sounding disapproving. Jake helped Amelia back out through the entrance. "Just get everyone down there alright." Jake grabbed the wire and unwound it down the steps. "Jake!" Gray shouted to him from at the top. Amelia stopped and turned to see what Gray wanted. He pulled a gun out from the back of his pants and tossed it down to Jake. "Be careful and protect both those girls." he told Jake. "When everyone is safe in there radio all clear and I'll blow the charge." Gray nodded and rushed back in the mine. Amelia stopped at Shep's truck and waited as Jake ran over. He set the charge and waited for Gray to give him the all clear. "Jake, we're all clear." Jake set the charge then pulled Amelia against him to block her from the explosion. She pulled away and ran to the truck. "Come on we have to go." She shouted as she climbed into the passenger seat. Jake got in he driver's seat and started the truck.

Jake slammed on the gas as Amelia checked to see if any bullets were in the chamber. She looked out the window to see the storm getting closer. They remained silent as Jake drove the truck to Stanley's ranch. They finally made it and he parked at the bottom of the hill. "We can't let them know we're here. Stay behind me and out of sight." he instructed and she nodded her head in agreement. They both got out of the truck and walked up the hill. Amelia gasped when she seen the situation. Emily had her gun on one guy who was holding onto Bonnie. She spotted the other guy around the porch. She tried to get Jake's attention but she couldn't find him. Just then a shot fired and the guy that was on the porch was shot. As the guy was shooting at Jake Amelia snuck around to the police cruiser and unlocked the trunk. Inside Bill and Jimmy were tied up and beaten. She gasped and quickly helped them out. She spotted a gun in the trunk and picked it up. She rushed over toward Emily who was standing still frozen. "Emily sweetie are you OK?" she asked as she pulled Emily toward the car. The guy was still shooting at Jake. The convict aimed his gun toward the girls and Amelia acted on reflex and aimed the gun and pulled the trigger. The guy fell to the ground dead.

Amelia just stared at the guy she just shot and killed and froze up. She felt the breeze on her face and she heard Jake telling Bonnie and Emily to help get Bill and Jimmy down to the cellar. She killed a guy. She has shot a gun plenty of times, but has never taken a life before. She could still see the guy's face in her mind as he went down dead. Jake rushed over to her as the wind picked up and the storm approached. "Amelia! We have to get to the cellar!" She heard him talking but nothing registered in her mind. Jake grabbed her arms and pulled her to face him. He grabbed her face and made her look at him. "Babe I need you to listen to me. Its gonna be alright. But we need to get inside right now the rain is coming!" She tried to pull away from him but he was stronger. "Baby please, I need to keep you safe! Please we need to get inside." She finally snapped out of her daze and he pulled her toward the cellar. Just as they reached it and pulled the door shut the ran started to pour.

Amelia sat with Emily and Bonnie as they heard the rain pour down. Amelia looked up to see Jake's eyes on her. She sighed and pulled herself from Emily and Bonnie who were both sleeping and made her way over to him. She crossed her arms and stood in front of him. "Look about what happened back there-" he cut her off as he stood up. "You did what you had to do. It'll get easier I promise." he reached for her hand, but she pulled away before he touch her. "You need to stop doing that." she whispered to him. He stood up confused and a bit hurt. "Doing what?" he asked already knowing what she was talking about. She sighed and looked up at him and tried to keep her face free from emotion. "Nothing has changed between us Jake. As soon as the rain stops I'm going back to New Bern. I still want that divorce." she told him before she tried to move back. He grabbed her arm to stop her and pulled her back. "You can not stand there and tell me that you still don't feel anything for me." Amelia shook her head furiously. "It doesn't matter Jake. You left me. Its been five years since I even heard from you." she whispered to him furiously. "We were married and I loved you. I would have stood by you through everything, but you decided to just take the easy way out and leave. So now that's what I am going to do." she told him before she turned back around to sit with Emily and Bonnie feeling her heart break all over again.


	3. Four Horsemen

Amelia sat quietly not talking to anyone. Bonnie was laying with her head on her lap and Emily was pacing back and forth. She heard Bill and Jake whisper about her and being worried that she wasn't talking to anyone. She didn't know how she felt at the moment. Everything was happening too quickly and her mind couldn't wrap around it. Bonnie sat up and looked at Jake. "I'm worried about Stanley. He doesn't know about the radiation. Something could have happened to him." Bonnie stated completely worried that her brother was hurt or worse. "I know Stanley. He'll be fine Bonnie. Once the rain stops he'll be here." Emily sighed as she sat back down. Just then static appeared on the radio that Jimmy was trying to fix. "Jake I got your brother on the radio. He's with your dad." Jimmy handed the radio to Jake. "Thank god. Eric how is dad?" he asked concerned for his family. "He's good. We got the town hall shelter secure. Jake where are you?" he asked his brother. "I'm at the Richmond's with Amelia, Jimmy, Bill, Bonnie and Emily. Look Eric as soon as it stops raining you need to dig those people out of the mine. They've been down there way too long." Jake said into the radio. Once Jake finished talking to Eric on the radio he stood up and made his way over to Amelia and Bonnie. Bonnie noticed that he wanted to talk to Amelia and stood up to go sit beside Emily who was trying to make herself comfortable. He grabbed the chair that Bonnie was sitting on and sat backwards on it so he was facing her. After a minute of silence she finally looked up at him. "How are you holding up?" he asked her quietly. She sighed and bit her lip. "It's been five years Jake. Is that really what you wanna say to me right now?" She scoffed at him angrily still very upset with him. He learned forward so only she could hear him. "No. What I really wanna do is have you in my arms and never let you go. But I know that can't happen right now. But right now all I can do is offer you support for what you're going through." he told her. Her eyes widened briefly. She looked at him losing her resistance to stay away from him. "Then why did you leave? If all you wanna do is be with me then why did you leave me?" she asked him knowing that she needed his answer. He opened his mouth to just tell her the truth about everything. Before he could they heard a banging coming from upstairs. They heard movement coming from the porch. Everyone stood up and Jake pushed Amelia behind him. The door to the cellar opened as the guys pointed their guns at whoever was coming down the stairs. They all sighed in relief when it was just Stanley. Amelia felt her heart drop when she realized that he was out in the rain that potentially was radioactive.

Amelia grabbed a towel and blanket for him to wrap up in. They wouldn't let Bonnie go near him with just in case he was contagious. Jake immediately got on the radio to get a hold of April. "He seems to be OK. He said he was out in it for about 20 minutes." Amelia wanted to go comfort her friend but knew that she couldn't. "Yea I was out at my cousin's helping him put the livestock up and got caught in it." he explained. "Is he vomiting?" April asked. "No he isn't." Jake radioed back. "Okay do you have iodine there?" Amelia walked over to the first aid cabinet and started looking through all the bottles that were in there. "So what's with all the tanks?" Stanley asked suddenly catching everyone's attention except Bonnie's. Amelia turned around in confusion. "What tanks?" she asked before turning back to search for the iodine. "On my way home, I passed a line of tanks. They were hauling ass towards Denver." he informed them. "Stanley how many tanks did you see?" Amelia spared a glance at Jake at the tone of his voice. He sounded so serious like he was planning to do something with that information. But the Jake she knew never use to take things like this seriously. "Five maybe." Stanley answered him. "Where?" he asked quickly. "They were over the ridge. I couldn't exactly tell you where they were." Amelia finally found the iodine and turned around. "Jake I found it." Amelia told him as she held up the bottle for him to see. He nodded and got back on the radio. "OK April we found the iodine." Jake said into the radio. "OK Jake he's going to need a couple of tablespoons so have Amelia do it she'll know how much to give him. Its going to taste vile so do you have any bread, something that he can take with it?" April asked. "We're in a cellar all we have down here is canned peaches and pickles." he said as he looked around at the canned food. Amelia made a face. "Definitely not the pickles, the sourness from the pickles will counteract with the iodine and it would end badly." Amelia imputed. "Not the pickles, the peaches you might be able to do." April said into the radio. Stanley shook his head. " 'Melia just give me the iodine." Stanley said as he grabbed it from her hands. "Your welcome." she retorted sarcastically as she crossed her arms and watched him. "The second that the rain breaks you need to rush him to the clinic." Amelia monitored how much he was drinking then she grabbed the bottle. "And Jake, if he starts throwing up in the next few hours you may want to get Bonnie out of that room." Jake turned and meet Amelia's gaze. "Why?" he asked not taking his eyes off of her. "Because her brother is going to die." Amelia closed her eyes and was thankful for once that Bonnie was deaf and couldn't hear what they were talking about.

Jake finally told April to hand the radio to his father. He had to tell him about the tanks that Stanley saw. "Dad, Stanley saw a line of tanks near I-70." he said into the radio to his dad. "There is a National Guard unit to the southwest of there in Goodland. Maybe they have a relief effort going." Jake got back on the radio. "We need to go check it out." Amelia snapped her head in his direction. She did not like that idea. "That's a very dangerous idea son. You need to stay put." Johnston argued back with his son. "We can't just sit around and wait to find out what's happening. I'll go to Goodland. Someone should check out Topeka." Amelia stormed over to Jake. "What are you doing? You're just going to go off by yourself is that it?" she asked him angrily. Jake sighed. "We have to find out what is going on. And the best way to do that is go out and scout out the area." he told her firmly. She crossed her arms and stood her ground. "Then I'm coming with you." He gave her a look. "What?" He asked her not understanding. "I am coming with you. You're going to need someone to go with you and New Bern is on the way-" he cut her off by shaking his head. "You are in no condition to come-" she pushed him back into the wall. "I am coming with you Jake and that's final." She didn't see Stanley give them a look from behind her as he gave Jake a sarcastic thumbs up.

Amelia stood by Stanley so she could watch over him. "You think you could go a little easier on him?" Stanley laughed at the glare he got in return. "No. He wants to go clear to Goodland by himself when there is radiation out there! He's insane!" she whispered to Stanley who just grinned widely at his friend who was worried about her husband but refused to admit it. "You and Jake are back in the same town together now. You two are acting just like you did before you got together. You both still care about each other. Just give it some time." Stanley tried to persuade her. She looked at him and gave him a sad smile. "I'm not staying here in Jericho. I'm going back to New Bern to be with my father. I need to know if he's alright or not. And staying here just brings up memories that I don't want to relive. It just makes things too hard." she went to turn around and noticed Jake standing there hearing their conversation. He shook his head at her. "If you really want to leave and go back to New Bern then I will take you back to New Bern, and I'll sign those damn papers and we can just be done with all of this." he told her angrily.

They heard the rain finally let up and Eric radioed to tell them that the air was clear. "Alright Bill, Emily I need you to get Stanley to the medical clinic now. Find April she'll know what to do. Jimmy you're coming with me to the mine." Amelia stopped in front of him. "Jake I meant what I said. I'll go with you to Goodland. But on the way back I'm staying in New Bern." Jake sighed and nodded his head. "Alright if that's what you wanna do. I need you to find us a car with plenty of fuel and some supplies. Meet me at the medical clinic." he placed his hands on her face briefly as Stanley witnessed the exchange. Jake got on the radio and told Eric to meet him at the mine to dig the people out. Amelia walked up the stairs and felt Jake's hand on her back. Every minute she spent around him she just wanted to stay.

Once she gathered up some supplies and filled her tank up she went to the medical center and decided to check on Stanley. She found April and she told her that he was being isolated in the children's waiting room. She made her way to check on him. She opened the door and seen Jake already in the room checking on Stanley. She walked into the room and stood beside Jake, but kept a distance from him. "How are you feeling? Did you throw up?" Amelia asked him anxiously. Stanley nodded his head. "Yea a couple times." he informed them as if it were no big deal. Amelia's eyes went wide and she laid a laid on Jake's shoulder who looked like he was gonna be sick himself. "Wha-" She couldn't even form a complete sentence. Stanley seen the affect he was having on his two closest friends and decided to put them out of their misery. "Apparently that's what happens when you drink a bottle of iodine." He said with a big smile. Amelia took a deep breath in relief as she felt Jake relax under her hand. She quickly removed her hand as Jake glanced at her briefly. "I need to get back to the house. I need to check on the livestock. I need to check on the corn. I need to get out of here, and you two need to sort out your problems together. You didn't think I didn't notice the looks or the touches you two have been giving each other-" Amelia cut him off. "We're not talking about this right now Stanley. You just need to stay here and take it easy for now." Amelia scolded him. "Amelia is right for once besides there isn't anything for you to do right now anyway." Jake added on earning a look from his wife. "They're right Stanley. You need to stay here and rest." Bonnie finally spoke up shutting her brother up. "I'm just really sick of being poked with needles every ten minutes. They'll be sorry when my spider powers kick in." he made a motion of shooting spider webs from his hands. Amelia shook her head. "Wow you are such a dork." she told him as she laughed. Jake leaned down to grab his face. "Well you're still an idiot so that's a good sign." he joked. They all laughed once they realized their friend was going to be just fine.

Amelia decided to follow Jake to check on his parents. She wanted to see them as well since she was close with them as well. They stopped by the door to hear them bickering about him staying put. "Don't make me take your pants with me." they heard Gail threaten. "I can run this town without my pants." he retorted back. Amelia cracked a smile as she listened to them. They were always so cute with each other and she thought she had that a long time ago. She looked up to see Jake already sneaking a peak at her. She felt herself blush and quickly turn away. "It wouldn't be the first time." Amelia stepped into the room followed by Jake. "That is a story that I need to hear sometime." she joked as they looked in the other pair's direction. "Not me I'm good. I don't ever wanna hear that story ever." Jake joked as he cracked a smile his eyes leaving Amelia and landing on his parents. "Oh you two." Gail rushed over and pulled her son into a hug. Then she turned and pulled Amelia into another hug. "How are you two feeling?" she asked going into parent mode. "I'm fine. Just a little shaken up, but nothing to be concerned about." Amelia lied not mentioning why she was shaken up. Gail nodded as she turned toward her son expectedly. "My leg is a little sore, but how is everything here?" he asked worried about his parents. "Your father has the flu." Gail informed her son. "Its nothing." Johnston responded back quickly. "Did you guys hear Mr. Rennie died?" Amelia asked saddened by the loss of a town member. "Its terrible." Johnston nodded . "I've been thinking more than anything, this town needs information." They listened as Jake talked to his parents. "We could organize a group of people and send them out in every direction." Jake ran his idea by his parents. "I don't think anyone should be leaving Jericho." Gail objected. "Jake is right we have to. We can't sit in the dark and not know anything that is going on. If something bad is happening we need to know what it is and get prepared for it." Amelia stepped in siding with Jake. Gail looked between the two of them and sighed. "You two always did stick by each other." she shook her head disapprovingly. "They're right Gail. It makes us too vulnerable.

Amelia left Jake to go load the car and catch a moment alone. She was debating even going with him alone. She knew it was dangerous to be alone with him, but she had to do what she had to do to get to New Bern to check on her father. She just had to make sure he was alive. She finally loaded the car with all the supplies and she walked into Bailey's where Jake was forming a small group and explaining where everyone should go. She walked up to them just as Gray questioned where Jake was going. Amelia stepped forward. "He's going to Goodland with me." she informed everyone. "That's right Amelia and I are taking the southwest route to Goodland to see about the National Guard." Jake said as he laid a hand on the small of her back. Gray looked skeptical at first then he nodded. "Alright, let's try to radio as much information as possible along the way." Gray tried to show some form of authority. "That's the plan. We hit the major cities in all direction, north, south, east and west." Jake stated. "The four horsemen of the apocalypse." Gray responded back. "Oh god let's hope not." Amelia replied back. They heard a commotion from the other side of the bar. Amelia stepped behind Jake as they watched the television turn from static to a news broadcast that looked Chinese to her. She shared a surprised look with Jake.

They stood there as they watched the news feed get a bit clearer to see that it was foreign. It briefly showed spots where it looked like were attacked on the map then the feed cut out back to static. Amelia leaned against the pool table as she listened to people chatter around her. "Was that Korean? Does anyone know?" Eric asked loudly to the crowd. "I think it was Chinese." Both Amelia and Jake shared at the same time causing Amelia to roll her eyes. Of course they would think of the same thing. "It was Mandarin." A man spoke who she had never met before. The way he was so sure of the language made her suspicious of him. "The question is, were they just reporting it, or are they behind it." Jake stated as he stood up. "Did Stanley say if there were any markings on the side of the tank?" Eric asked his brother who limped over to where Amelia was standing by the maps. "No." Amelia stated as she moved over so Jake could look at the maps. "You don't think we're being invaded do you?" Eric continued to ask. "Abrams and Crossfield are out. They won't drive into a war zone." Gray stated as he came up to stand beside Eric. "Yea I don't blame them." Amelia gave Eric a glare who glared back. "Look, why don't we put this plan on hold. We saw one image we'll probably see another." Eric tried to talk his brother out of going. Jake turned to him finally. "Going out is more important then ever. If this country is at war we need to know it." Jake screamed at his brother. Amelia laid a hand on Jake's shoulder. "Alright Jake he gets the picture calm down." she said as she pulled his attention away from Eric and back to the maps. That stranger who they have never met walked over to them and looked at Jake. "I heard that you lost a couple of your men. If you need any help I can offer my service of volunteer." he said to Jake and glanced at Amelia. "Thanks Mister…" he trailed off so the stranger could give his name. "Hawkins, Robert Hawkins." he introduced himself as he shook Jake's hand. "I'm Jake. Do you have a family Hawkins?" Jake asked him. "Yes I do. Two kids." he said to Jake. "Its best to leave this to men who don't have families. But we can use your help on something else." Amelia scoffed at his words. She pushed past him and walked out of the bar. "Amelia!?" he shouted in surprise. He quickly pushed through people to go after her. He found her walking quickly down the street. He rushed to catch up with her. "Amelia!" he grabbed her arm and pulled her around to face him. She glared at him and pulled her arm from his grasp. "Talk to me what's wrong?" he asked her. She scoffed at him. "You don't get it do you? You told that guy that it was best he stay behind because he has a family. But guess what Jake so do you. Your mother misses you so much. And for some reason you want to go get yourself killed!" She paused as she took a deep breath. "Do what you want Jake." she threw her hands up in defeat. "You're good at that." she had the last word before she walked past him back toward city hall to grab the extra supplies.

Amelia stopped at her car to wait for Jake with the rest of the supplies. She put her bag in the backseat and turned to see Gail standing behind her. She jumped in surprise. "Mrs. Green you scared me." she laughed as she shut the car door. "I didn't mean to scare you sweetie. I just want to make sure you both have everything you need." Gail said as she watched Jake walk toward them with another box. She noticed that Amelia tensed up and put her sunglasses back on her face. She watched as Amelia fiddled with a necklace and noticed a ring that was hidden on the chain. She decided she was going to find out what it was about. She turned toward Jake and gave him a look. He sighed as he put the box in the back. "Don't give me that look mom." he said as he stood in front of her. "I have watched you drive away a bunch of times not knowing if you were ever coming back. I think I've earned a look." she told her son as Amelia smirked and slid into the passenger seat. Jake sat in the driver's seat and looked at his mom. "I'm coming back mom." he told her. "You better. The both of you better come back." Amelia glanced at Gail through her sunglasses and gave her a small smile. Gail leaned in and kissed Jake on the cheek. "You two take care of each other." she said before she moved away from the car so Jake could drive off.

Amelia and Jake sat in silence as they drove down the interstate. He glanced her way and sighed. "Are you going to talk to me at all or just ignore me?" he asked her sounding frustrated. She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't have anything I wanna say to you right now." she told her clearly lying. "HA! That's a lie. You have a lot you wanna say to me. So just say it while its you and me." Jake baited her. She finally turned in her seat completely angry. "Alright fine. I have a lot to say to you. You're the one that asked me to marry you. You said that you wanted to spend the rest of your life with me. So we get married." Her voice raised as she kept yelling at him. "Then we have to keep it a secret cause it would ruin Eric's big day." she said sarcastically as she used air quotes. "Then not even two weeks later after Eric's wedding you decided to split town without me!" she shouted at him. He glanced in her direction briefly as he drove. "I was trying to protect you. They were going to hurt you if I didn't leave town, Mitch and Jonah. They hated that Chris died and was threatening you. So I did what I thought was right-" she caught him off. "Thought was right? You left me for five years Jake! You should've explained to me what was going on." He gave her a look. "Yea right. You would've went straight to Mitch and that would have ended badly. I did what I did to protect you." Amelia shook her head. "Well that is just the stupidest thing you have ever-" she stopped as Jake slowed the car to a stop. She looked what was in front of them blocking the road. Once the car was stopped they both got out and looked in surprise. "A plane had landed right in the middle of the road. Behind it was another plane that had crashed. She lifted the glasses from her face as she looked with wide eyes. "It looks like we're not going beyond this point." he informed her slightly happy that she has to stay in Jericho now.

They drove back in silence as Amelia was disappointed that she couldn't get to New Bern. They made it back to town and noticed that they were cooking meat right on Main Street. Amelia and Jake walked through the people until they found his mom. She looked so happy to see them both. They grabbed her and rushed to city hall to talk to Johnston and tell him what they discovered. Eric was the first to notice them. "Jake? Amelia? What are you guys doing back?" Eric asked confused. "Smoky Hill Bridge is blocked." Amelia informed them. Jake unzipped his bag and they noticed something heavy in it. "Guys what is that?" Bill asked them. "It's a flight data recorder." Jake explained knowing what it would be. "I thought they were suppose to be black." Bill stated earning a look from Amelia. "A couple of pilots used the highway as a landing strip with mixed results. This is the one we could get." Jake explained. "Were there any survivors?" Gail asked hesitantly. Everyone in the room looked at Jake and Amelia. "It was a commute plane that didn't make it. A 757 that was empty." Jake told his mother. "How do we listen to this?" Bill asked staying on business. "Do you have that old reel-to-reel laying around?" he asked Bill. "Yea let me go grab it." Bill said as he walked off. "I need to get your father he needs to hear this." Gail said before she walked off. Eric stayed as he eyed Amelia looking pale. "How are you feeling?" he asked Amelia catching Jake's attention who glanced at her. She folded her arms over her chest. "I'm a little freaked out, but I'll survive." She sat down as she watched Jake take apart the recording so they could listen to it. They listened as the pilots talked back and forth. Jake listened and he called for Emily. He changed the tones on the recording and he found the flight that the flight Emily's fiancée was on had landed safely. Amelia pulled Emily into her arms for comfort. She looked over Emily's shoulder to see Jake staring at her. She walked out of the room with Emily leaving Jake staring after her longingly.

Amelia sat down at one of the tables with a cup full of wine. She thought about what all she said to Jake and what he said to her. Maybe there could be some forgiveness in their future. She looked around to see everyone so happy. She can't remember the last time she was in Jericho and the town was having this much fun together. A plate got dropped in front of her. She looked up startled to see Jake smirk and sit down beside her. "Thanks." she said as she started to cut up her meat with a smile on her face. "I'm glad you're here." he told her as he stole a piece from her plate. She looked at him and shoved him lightly. "Hey! Eat your own!" she laughed causing him to laugh back. "That was a nice thing that you did for Emily. She really needed that." Amelia said as she placed her hand on top of Jake's before she stood up to talk to Emily and a couple other women. Gail witnessed the exchange between the two and smiled. "What are you thinking about sweetie?" Johnston asked noticing that her attention was somewhere else. "Jake and Amelia. I missed the both of them together. I'm glad that they can find a way to work through their differences." she told her husband. Amelia was laughing and talking with a group of people she went to school with and didn't notice that Jake was watching her. She glanced in his direction and noticed he was intensely watching her. She smiled back and blushed before she went back to her conversation with Emily about crashing at her house. Jake noticed the blush and smirked. He planned on winning her back one way or another.


End file.
